A rush of new recruits may soon be joining the men and women in blue of the Melbourne Police Department, thanks to the cool video that Garrett Hinton and Justin Snyder recently completed.

When the department needed a tool that told the story in the manner of an action-adventure film, they called on Rockledge’s iAerials Media, the company where Hinton serves as president and Snyder as director and head cinematographer.

In 3 minutes, 25 seconds, iAerials distilled an action-packed statement of the many talents needed to fulfill the demands of a multi-faceted, modern law enforcement agency like Melbourne’s. The project required filming law enforcement officers doing everything from rappelling down an 11-story building to scuba diving, all in the line of duty.

Hinton and Snyder are doing something right, because their company this year snagged 11 American Advertising Federation awards for television, web and video projects. Among their list of clients are NASA, the Radisson and Four Seasons hotel chains, Audi, Ron Jon Surf Shop and Port Canaveral.

How did you get into this line of business?

I’ve always had a knack for RC planes, helicopters and really anything of that nature. Before everyone had a drone, or even knew what they were, I was building and flying them.

iAerials started out as a way to help family members who were real estate agents take aerial pictures and videos of the homes that they were listing back in 2012. It grew from there when I met Justin and learned about his background in filmmaking.

Today, we are one of the premiere full service production companies in Central and East Florida.

What was the process for creating the Melbourne Police Department video?

It was the same as for every project we tackle. It all starts with story, with understanding the purpose and the “why” before moving forward. It can be easy to just rush right into a project like this because of all the cool things we could do, but in the process, we could lose what we are really trying to say through this video. That’s why we spend so much time in pre-production, just like you would if you were making a movie. Every angle, cut, sound effect and camera movement has a purpose to help communicate the overall goal and story. We never go in wondering what we are going to do that day. We have a detailed plan, shot list and story board, so we can be as efficient and creative as we possibly can.

What was the most challenging part of the project?

Aside from the staggering logistical elements that go into a production like this, one of the biggest challenges was narrowing down on exactly how to showcase the Melbourne PD, especially with all the bad publicity police have been receiving recently. We want prospective recruits to understand the professionalism and capability of the Melbourne PD as well as the many career choices available to them with the Mel PD.

Is there a second video in store for Melbourne police?

The second video is basically a public service statement to help people have confidence in their police department. We wanted people to truly understand how professional, dedicated and hard-working their police department really is, as well as understand the diversity of resources within the police department itself. Being a police officer isn’t about making you have a bad day by pulling you over, it’s about serving and protecting you, the public, and there are so many different fields necessary to accomplish that, from SWAT to K-9 to their dive unit, to only name a few.

Do you do the filming yourself?

Justin Snyder, our director and head cinematographer, leads and films for our camera A unit while, if the production calls for it — like for a four-day, million-dollar Indian wedding — some of our talented and handpicked team will run additional camera and sound units.

Discuss a typical workday.

Every day is a new adventure and challenge on set, from shooting underwater with an Olympic-level triathlete to getting shots of the NASA Space Center from a helicopter. Because of the equipment and tools iAerials owns, along with connections we have made, we can properly tell a variety of stories, from an intimate and impactful interview about an Alzheimer’s foundation to an action film-style police recruitment video. The only limit is the imagination.

At the end of the day, we understand that it all boils down to listening to our clients’ needs and finding the best way to tell their story. The best listeners are the best storytellers and we are dedicated to using our knowledge, resources and technology to clearly tell our clients’ stories.

To see some of iAerials’ projects, visit

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